Clutha's business watchdog has gone into bat for Telford Rural Polytechnic, whose long-term future could be decided by a review of land-based tertiary education funding.
The Clutha District Council's district development board yesterday approved a submission expressing the board's fears further funding cuts could have a negative impact on the wider agricultural industry.
The paper was the result of a brainstorming session involving council staff, and representatives from Federated Farmers, Otago Regional Council, Clutha Agricultural Development Board and other members of the district's farming sector.
The submission is only a brief one for now, and the board hopes it will get the chance to make a more detailed one once the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) releases its consultation document on its planned changes to land-based funding.
Late last year, TEC cut Telford's funding by 20% and there are fears locally more cuts could happen in the future. Some even believe the review could determine Telford's future.
The board submission said, historically, experience shows any change "grows bureaucracy'' and reduces the amount of training actually available.
"It is important that any changes to land-based training retain or increase the proportion of funding that goes into actual training rather than overheads.''
Changes, if any, must also retain and build on the existing strengths of co-operation between trainers, relationships between the farming community and trainers and training that is nationally recognised and trusted.
The board said there was also serious concern that the number of equivalent full-time students (EFTS) was being shifted from Telford to regional polytechnics with no certainty those EFTS would then be delivered or retained for agriculture training.
"This prejudges and devalues the current review and could see overall provision to agriculture decrease even further.''
Submissions to the review closed last Monday. The TEC working group will interview stakeholders and others by the end of May.
